To add to the confusion about all the recent events surrounding the family, it seems that while the pair left the castle together Monday, William was heading to Westminster Abbey for the annual Commonwealth Day service this afternoon, while Kate was reportedly going to a private appointment.
The photo was taken and shared just hours after Kensington Palace released an apology attributed to Kate, in which she admitted to editing the family photo of herself and her kids the royals released to mark Mother’s Day on Sunday. “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing,” the apology said. “I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day.”
A source from Kensington Palace told Bazaar, “This was an amateur, family photograph taken by the Prince of Wales. [They] wanted to offer an informal picture of the family together for Mother’s Day.”
Major news agencies later retracted the photo; a kill notification released by the Associated Press explained the decision: “At closer inspection it appears that the source has manipulated the image. No replacement photo will be sent.”
Today, two days after the car photo of William and Megan was released, people online began suggesting that it too looked altered, as the bricks in the background near Kate seemed somewhat out of place. Goff Photos, the photo agency that captured the image, quickly and vehemently denied those allegations, and said it made no alterations beyond cropping and lightening the photo.
Jim Bennett, the photographer who took it, told People, “We don’t change our photos in Photoshop, other than adjusting the light levels if necessary. Car shots are unpredictable at the best of times, and with some reflection on the glass it can be difficult.”
Bennett said he was in the area that day because he expected to see William heading to London for the Commonwealth Day service. “It wasn’t until I checked on the back of the camera to make sure I had a frame of Prince William that I realized there was someone sitting next to him. It turned out to be Catherine!” he said.